AI receptionist pricing has a wide range in 2026, and the number that matters isn't the monthly fee — it's how many jobs you'd need to recover for the system to pay for itself. For most Montana businesses, that's somewhere between one and three calls a month.
Off-the-shelf AI receptionist apps: $100–$300/month
Generic AI answering apps like Goodcall, Dialpad Ai Receptionist, and similar platforms run roughly $100–$300 per month depending on call volume and features. They're fast to start and handle simple call flows well — hours, directions, basic FAQs. Their limit is specificity: they can't qualify a caller with your exact intake questions or integrate with niche tools like Jobber, ServiceTitan, or field-service CRMs.
Tailored AI receptionist builds (Skyline): $2,500–$10,000 one-time
A tailored AI receptionist — trained on your services, your pricing, your booking process, and your FAQs, and handling both inbound and outbound calls end-to-end — is structured as a one-time build of $2,500–$10,000, scaled to complexity: a contractor's AI receptionist with estimate booking and after-hours handling differs from a multi-provider dental practice with specific appointment types and escalation rules. There is no ongoing per-minute or monthly subscription fee. At Skyline, the build is priced to be recaptured from the first month's recovered calls.
Human answering services: $100–$900+/month (and up)
Traditional answering services like Ruby, AnswerConnect, and PATLive charge per minute or per interaction — often $0.75–$1.50 per minute — plus a base plan fee. At 100 calls per month at 3 minutes each, that's $225–$450 in per-minute charges alone, plus the plan. That adds up fast for busy trades businesses or healthcare practices that take dozens of calls a day.
Full-time receptionist hire: $35,000–$50,000+/year loaded
A full-time front desk hire in Montana runs $32,000–$40,000 in base salary, plus payroll taxes, benefits, and PTO — typically $38,000–$50,000 loaded. They cover 40 hours a week (when they're not sick or on vacation) and can't answer while they're with another caller. For businesses that only need call coverage, this is a hard number to justify when AI covers 24/7 for a fraction of the cost.
| Option | Typical cost | Hours covered | Knows your business |
|---|---|---|---|
| Off-the-shelf AI app | $100–$300/month | 24/7 | Generic only |
| Tailored AI receptionist (Skyline) | One-time build ($2,500–$10,000) | 24/7 | Yes — built to your SOP |
| Human answering service | $100–$900+/month (variable) | Plan-dependent | Generic script |
| Full-time hire (loaded) | $38,000–$50,000/year | ~40 hrs/wk | Yes, over time |
The real question: what does a missed call cost you?
Most Montana businesses miss 20–40% of inbound calls. In industries like residential roofing, HVAC, and pest control, each missed call can be worth $275–$1,200 in lost revenue. A dental office loses $250–$350 in first-visit production per missed new patient. A law firm misses a case worth thousands. If you recover two or three high-value calls a month that would have gone to voicemail, most AI receptionist builds pay for themselves in month one.